Wanted
by Eiridian
Summary: A few snapshots peeking into the lives of Hizashi and Shouta as they grow from academy students to professional heroes, all the while with each other at their side.


Title song by Hunter Hayes

* * *

 **Wanted**

Vocal chords that were used to forming sounds that were loud enough to permanently deafen and destroy entire city blocks were also capable of soft reverberations as they gently hummed a low, familiar tune. The living room's television was on with the sound turned down as low as it would go, the flickering light from its screen lighting up the two men on the couch. The humming was coming from the man that was still conscious, leaned comfortably against the couch's arm as his lap served as a pillow for his sleeping companion. Fingers were slowly combing through thick dark hair as shadowed green eyes gazed fondly down at a rugged face relaxed in sleep.

It had been late when Hizashi had last checked the time before Shouta had commandeered his lap for a snooze, and that had been quite a while ago. Although the blond was just as worn out from a long, trying week, he wanted to stay awake as long as he could so that he could just watch Shouta in rare peace.

Thinking back years upon years ago to when they didn't even know that the other existed it was kind of insane that they had ended up where they were now in a cozy apartment being the picture perfect domestic couple complete with snoring cat. Brushing some errant locks of hair out of the face that he'd been in love with for so long that he couldn't remember ever not being in love, Hizashi conceded that there really had been no way that he could have escaped this.

* * *

The first morning that Hizashi walked into UA as a bright eyed first year he had been ready to take on the world. With his best friend, Hise, at his side chatting loudly about nonsense with an arm slung over his shoulder, the day couldn't have been brighter. As they followed the other first years to their building, Hise not so subtly checking out every single girl to pass by, Hizashi's body was practically humming in excitement. This was the first day at his dream school and he was on his way to becoming a pro hero alongside his best friend since elementary school, there was no way it could get better than this.

Walking into classroom 1-A and taking a quick scan of his new classmates, Hizashi had to rethink his previous statement. As his eyes, hidden beneath his super cool new glasses that were tinted orange, landed on the dark stranger sitting in the furthest desk towards the back of the room and his heart gave a little thump, his day got even better.

"Must be one of the students who got in off of a letter. I don't remember seeing him at the entrance exam." Hise was stage whispering, following his friend's line of sight that hadn't yet left the corner desk.

Hise was right. Hizashi was sure he would have remembered seeing someone like the teen currently slouched uncaringly in his seat with a book laid out in front of him. His school uniform was neat and crisp, whereas his jaw length hair was messily tousled as if he'd just rolled out of bed, his jaw itself was dusted in the beginnings of a dark scruff, and his eyes… Hizashi probably shouldn't have looked at his eyes. Half-lidded in apparent tiredness, the stranger's eyes looked like they belonged to a chronic insomniac. They looked dry from prolonged lack of blinking with charcoal shadows underneath them, but their color was such a rich dark brown that it was mesmerising.

"Ahem, you're gonna start drooling soon." Hise very helpfully snapped Hizashi's loose jaw closed with a flick of his finger before readjusting his friend's glasses for him.

"I am not!" The indignant heat that he could feel rising to his cheeks probably wasn't helping. Turning his back to the far corner, Hizashi let his school bag thud onto the nearest empty desk before plopping down with a huff.

A sharp nudge to Hizashi's shoulder made him glance up curiously. Hise had a roguish grin on his face as he watched the group of girls coming in through the door.

"Perk up, wingman. It's go time."

Hizashi was on his feet in an instant, leaning cool and casual against the desk Hise was sitting on and mirroring his friend's charismatic grin.

"Good morning, ladies." Hizashi's carrying voice made the three girls' eyes turn towards them in surprise. "My best buddy right here was just telling me how you ladies were looking so fine this morning that you could have single handedly hung the stars and- oh look! You did!" Right on cue, Hise activated his quirk and made several brightly shining stars appear in mid air to hover serenely around the girls.

There were giggles of embarrassment and oohs of awe as the two friends high-fived each other behind their backs. This was a well-practiced routine between the two of them, honed and perfected over the years to woo the ladies and get Hise his reputation as the most notorious ladies' man in their old prefecture. Hizashi himself had no interest in picking up girls, but he always enjoyed the fun that came along with helping Hise and even he had to admit that their new female classmates were good to look at.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." The girl in the middle with almost white blonde hair, a dazzling smile, and shiny crystal jewelry all over her body bowed courteously. "I'm Ikeda Miki, and these are my friends Sasaki Sen and Kayama Nemuri."

"The pleasure is all ours." Hise was quick to respond with his most charming smile. "Yokozawa Hise, at your service, and my best bud Yamada Hizashi." A hearty thump to Hizashi's back made him wince a little, Hise's eagerness to impress females usually made him a bit more careless, but before they could continue the conversation their teacher arrived.

"Take your seats, take your seats." The tiny middle-aged lady that toddled in and hopped easily on top of the teacher's desk looked like the sweetest thing but Hizashi knew better. The chatter in the classroom instantly died as students took one look at the front desk before scrambling to sit in a desk.

With the hero name of Medusa, it wasn't difficult to see why their new teacher had chosen that name for herself. A dozen snakes were attached to the small woman's head in place of hair, all of which were perked up and taking in the new students sitting at their desks in fear induced silence. Medusa could tap into each one of her snakes' vision, making it so that there was not a single occurrence in a room that could escape her, and upon command her snakes could petrify whoever they were looking at. She was truly a formidable hero in the field and looked to be a scary teacher in school.

Both human and snake eyes suddenly turned to land directly on Hise and Hizashi, causing the two of them to jerk their spines even straighter than they had already been.

"You two will be trouble." Medusa mumbled, narrowing her eyes at the two friends. "You! Sleepy in the corner!" Her sudden bark like command made the entire room jump. "You're moving desks. You get to separate these two troublemakers."

A huffy grumble went unperturbed by the challenging glare coming from a dozen hissing snakes as a chair could be heard scraping against the floor. Hizashi didn't dare turn his head to look as footsteps shuffled towards him, his gaze was too glued on his terrifying new teacher.

"Move, cockatoo." The voice was deep and scratchy, unhurried in its execution much like the person it belonged to. Glancing up, Hizashi found those tired eyes he'd been admiring to be a lot closer than they had previously been.

Moving himself over to the empty desk beside him in a daze, Hizashi watched as the object of his fascination slumped down in his vacated desk before closing his eyes. Hise was watching as well from the other side before locking eyes with Hizashi over the stranger's back and mouthing, "you sure know how to pick them."

"I told you to just sit by me to begin with." A buff, cheerful looking blond that Hizashi hadn't noticed sitting behind him before leaned forward to thump the dark haired teen on the back. He had a kind, handsome face, clear blue eyes, and all the girls were sending him adoring looks. Hizashi already didn't like him.

"Can it, Toshi." The sleepy grumble was muffled by the arm the teen was using as a pillow. These two strange teenagers who were now Hizashi's classmates seemed to be the only ones unaffected by Medusa's seething snakes while everyone else was still stiff as boards in their seats.

"This is your first day at UA, your first steps towards becoming pro heroes, let's not mess it up before it begins, hm?" Medusa called the class to order, shooting the four teens now seated at the front of the class right in front of her warning looks as she pulled out the roster. "Let's get to know your new classmates. Aizawa Shouta?"

A very disinterested "here" and half-hearted arm raised from Sleepy's desk responded to Medusa calling his name. A very displeased tut passed Medusa's lips before she continued down the list.

Coming to the end of the list after hearing "here" called back at her with varying degrees of enthusiasm, including a very exuberant one from the giant blond Toshinori Yagi, Medusa was seriously beginning to reconsider taking this class on when she called out, "Yamada Hizashi?"

"Present!" Hizashi shot a hand in the air with a giant grin that only grew brighter at the muffled giggles he could hear from around the classroom.

"There always has to be the one." Medusa sighed. After finally finishing her list of twenty headaches that she would have for the rest of the school year, Medusa set her list down and hopped off her desk. "Okay, rascals, get changed into your gym clothes. We're gonna see what you're made of."

Now this was more like it.

After everyone had changed out of their school uniforms into their blue gym suits and congregated on the sports field in a line, Medusa stood before them and eyed each of them up and down. "For your first exercise as UA students, I want you to learn each other's quirks and think on your feet. Try not to kill each other." Her snakes were scanning the students as Medusa thought for a moment. "Sleepy, cockatoo, you two are up first. Try to subdue the other."

Hizashi was both excited and nervous about being called out first, but an encouraging thump from Hise had him stumbling forward before regaining his balance. Standing in the cleared field a ways away from his classmates as Sleepy, Aizawa, shuffled into place across from him with back slouched and hands in his pockets, Hizashi began to wonder what this guy's quirk was to get him a bypass of the entrance exams. No matter, Hizashi was always super confident in himself and he was sure that even without his quirk that confidence would take him further than most people.

"Prepare to be blown away, Shouta-kun." Hizashi was being cocky, he knew that, but he couldn't help it. Adjusting his glasses and his stance, Hizashi straightened his back and took a deep breath of air into his lungs as he prepared to activate his quirk.

When Hizashi opened his mouth to let his voice out, however, nothing came out. Baffled, the blond took in another deep breath and tried again. Still, not a sound left his mouth even though he could feel the sound waves being produced and traveling up his throat. Through his utter confusion and rising panic, Hizashi suddenly caught sight of those tired eyes now open as wide as they would go as they stared him down with an eerie red color tinging the brown irises. Aizawa was like a different person with his slouch and all traces of lazy tiredness gone. His stare was so intense and his hair was actually lifting off of his shoulders. It was all just a bit intimidating.

A sudden move forward and Hizashi somehow lost sight of Aizawa for a split second before he felt his legs being swiftly kicked out from underneath him. Landing hard on his back with a strong hand thrust firmly on his chest to keep him down, Hizashi struggled to get breath back into his lungs as he stared up at red eyes that were dimming back to brown.

"I'm still waiting, Yamada-san." There was a snarky little smirk on Aizawa's face before he stood up and walked back to where the class was watching with wide eyes.

That may have been the moment that Hizashi started falling in love.

* * *

Hise was bad for Hizashi. He'd known this for years, but they had so much fun getting into trouble together that he really didn't care. Now that Hizashi finally had someone that he was interested in, Hise had made it his mission to repay him for all of the girls that he'd helped him score over the years. Except Hizashi actually had class when he helped Hise with girls, Hise… not so much. For Hise it was a lot of crass pick up lines, a lot of suggestive comments, and a lot of public displays of inappropriate affection. Hise had been his best friend for a long time and Hizashi trusted him implicitly, but this was one matter that he needed to question his friend on.

Deciding on a healthy balance between his own shyness and Hise's shamelessness, Hizashi started off slow. Every morning he'd greet his sleepy desk neighbor with a new cheerful nickname.

"Good morning, sleepyhead!"

"Rise and shine, moonhead!"

"Oversleep today, bedhead?"

"You should really get a more comfortable pillow, bookhead."

Hizashi was pretty sure that Aizawa didn't have that twitch in his eye with just anybody. Toshinori, who Hizashi learned had gone to the same middle school as Aizawa and loved poking fun at him, enjoyed watching Hizashi and Hise make Aizawa squirm and actually got along really well with the two friends. After figuring out that Aizawa started calling Toshinori Toshi out of pure laziness and not any kind of affection, Hizashi began to really like the super strong blond who could probably carry the entire class on his shoulders.

Once Aizawa got reluctantly used to the greeting he had to look forward to every morning it was time to ramp it up a notch. Taking a bit of Hise's advice, Hizashi started complimenting random things about Aizawa each day.

"Your eyes are looking exceptionally tired today."

"Your hair is a lovely shade of messy."

"Your school tie looks nicer than everyone else's."

"Your butt looks fantastic in your gym suit."

Hizashi got a punch to the face for that last one.

Aizawa had a permanent twitch to his eye now whenever Hizashi was around, especially since Hizashi always called him Shouta just because. It was a cute name and the first few times that he used it Hizashi actually got a blush out of the other teen. Now, however, Hizashi could tell he was seriously pushing on Aizawa's last nerve and an explosion of wrath was drawing near.

It happened when Hizashi finally gave into Hise's insistence that his idea would work. In hindsight, wolf whistling at a super quiet bookworm who liked to keep to himself from across the school courtyard was probably the worst decision that Hizashi could have made. After receiving a heavy hardcover book straight to his face, Hizashi stood there as Aizawa went _off_. There was a lot of yelling, a lot of very firm insistence that they were _not_ on friendly enough terms for first names, and a whole host of other grievances thrown at him that Aizawa had been building up.

Hizashi felt bad, really truly bad. He was a floundering idiot when it came to conveying the kind of feelings he had and it ended up hurting the person he'd been trying to find a way to confess to. Hise was there, like he always was, trying to bolster his spirits and assuring him that it wasn't as bad as he was making it seem. With a big brotherly hug and a pat to his spiky head despite protests, Hise told him to keep his chin up and to not give up. Hise was convinced that the incident could only be a good thing, at the very least Hizashi had finally gotten a reaction.

Hizashi still felt bad. So after a few days of giving Aizawa a lot of space he'd hidden himself away after school with a guitar he'd found in an old music room and tried to make himself feel better. No one, not even Hise, had heard him sing before. He didn't think he was that good and was super embarrassed by his voice when it wasn't being used to deafen someone, but singing made him happy so he did it when he was alone. Turns out that particular afternoon he wasn't alone. Aizawa had reappeared from wherever it was he'd been going to to hide from people and was suddenly standing in front of Hizashi with an expression that the blond couldn't figure out.

"Your voice is actually not bad when you're not shouting and running your mouth. You should continue."

They became friends after that, tentatively at first, and Hizashi couldn't be happier. Then he discovered what it meant to be friends with Aizawa.

"How is my hair green?!" Hizashi screeched as he ran into the classroom after lunch one day, his hair a bright neon green and attracting more attention than he usually did.

"I think it looks better this way." Aizawa was at his desk with yet another one of his books as Hise and Toshi did a poor job of hiding their snickers behind their hands.

Hizashi never found out how Aizawa managed to pull off that prank, or any of the numerous others that he pulled in the months following their new friendship. It was probably some kind of payback for everything that Hizashi had put him through. It was a surprisingly easy friendship, as Hizashi's constant chatter more than made up for Aizawa's quietness, and it was so comfortable that Hizashi almost forgot about the crush he still harbored.

He was very forcefully reminded of it the first time they suited up in their hero uniforms.

Hizashi had his suit designed so that most of the focus was around his throat. He'd been very carefully specific with the directional amplifier that he wanted around his neck to concentrate the sound he produced in one direction rather than letting it scatter. He also wanted a good pair of headphones to protect his own ears since sometimes his quirk affected even himself. When he looked over at Aizawa as he was adjusting his own gear, Hizashi found himself staring for the first time in a long time.

Aizawa was dressed all in black, unassuming and easily lost in shadows, with a heavy looking pair of goggles hanging around his neck. They looked like something medieval with small slits cut into the golden metal. They were smart, Aizawa's quirk required him to stare at someone to nullify their quirk but it'd be much more effective if the enemy couldn't discern how he was doing it. What really caught Hizashi's attention though was the soft gray scarf that was hovering around Aizawa's body as he directed it to wind around his neck. It had to be over a dozen feet long and Hizashi couldn't figure out how Aizawa was controlling it without even touching it, but as it fell into place around his neck and shoulders it made him look softer and he positively stole Hizashi's breath.

The violent pounding of his heart was hard to ignore and Hizashi had to force his eyes away so that he could force some oxygen into his lungs. That crush of his was definitely not dead.

Their first year at UA was halfway through and they'd all already learned much and grown tremendously in their abilities. Medusa was proud, even if her students did give her and her snakes migraines on a daily basis. Everyone was shaping up to become exceptional heroes, and it was time for them to choose their future hero names.

Toshinori, at the top of their class with a near untouchable quirk and a spirit of steel, chose to be called All Might. Miki, the pretty girl who reminded Hizashi of a crystal snowflake and had taken a shine to Hise, chose the name Crystalline to reflect her body's ability to produce crystal structures at will. Hise had his hero name planned out since his quirk first manifested. With the ability to produce several stars at a time and detonate them to explode as any celestial star would, he wanted to be called Supernova. Hizashi, much to Medusa's consternation, cheekily announced that he wanted to be called Present Mic. Aizawa couldn't care less what he was called, so Hizashi named him Eraserhead as a joke that kind of stuck.

Everything was going so amazingly well. Hizashi had a group of friends that he'd probably have for life if they all made it as heroes and school was going great, there was nothing that could bring him down now.

* * *

Hise wasn't moving.

There was so much blood and bruising and the pain shooting through Hizashi's body was making it hard to see or think clearly but Hise wasn't moving. It had been a routine walk around the city with their current hero mentors on a normal peaceful evening. A slight disturbance at a jewelry store down the street had drawn their mentors away for a moment as they told the two students to stay put and that it shouldn't take long. Supernova and Present Mic had been chilling on the sidewalk, keeping an eye out for any further trouble, when what felt like a ton of half-hard clay suddenly slammed into them out of nowhere to knock them into a back alley away from the eyes of witnesses.

The villain's quirk turned him into some kind of giant clay monster, his body strong enough to be impervious to Supernova's star explosions and his punches strong enough to shatter Mic's amplifier and smash into his vocal chords. Reeling from the excruciating pain of taking the blow to his neck and falling to his knees, Mic had been powerless to resist whatever it was that the villain stuck over his mouth. No matter how desperately hard he pulled at the smelly material covering his mouth and making him dizzy it would not budge.

Whatever was making the material's adhesive quality ridiculously strong was also making Mic's body weak and his mind hazy, rendering him worse than useless as he helplessly watched the villain whaling on Supernova right in front of him. His mind couldn't comprehend anything, why this was happening, what the villain wanted with two no name hero students, how they had gotten caught so completely off guard, nothing would connect in his numbed brain except for the fact that Hise was being beaten to death and he couldn't do anything to stop it.

Supernova was on the ground, unmoving in a growing pool of his own blood, and the clay villain was coming towards Present Mic with a sinister smirk on his face. Fear lanced through every nerve in his body as Hizashi stared up at the villain who would probably kill him. He wasn't ready for this. He wasn't ready to die and definitely not like this. He wasn't a hero yet, he hadn't saved anybody yet, he hadn't traveled and seen the ocean yet, he hadn't even reached his twentieth birthday yet! He had so much more that he wanted to do, so many more places he wanted to go, and it would all be snatched away in an instant if he died here. He'd never… he'd never even actually properly confessed to the guy he'd fallen in love with at first sight.

With a ground shaking roar, a giant clay hand hardened as it was raised in preparation to come swinging down on Hizashi's body. Clenching his eyes closed as his body stiffened in preparation for the blow, Hizashi's mind went terrifyingly blank before the colors of his life went speeding by on the back of his eyelids in the span of a second.

The blow never came.

A ferocious growl that Hizashi had never heard before reached his ears and when he opened his eyes he was stunned to see a completely naked man standing in front of him with a skinny arm raised above his head. The man seemed even more surprised than Hizashi, but it didn't last long as a dark figure came crashing down into his chest from somewhere above them. Gray material came fluttering down after the figure as it released from its anchor and wrapped instead around the villain to immobilize him. The gold goggles were covering Eraserhead's eyes, but Hizashi knew that they were hiding angry red eyes that were staring holes into the villain cowering at his feet.

Once the villain was fully bound and secured, Aizawa rushed over to Hizashi's side as he pulled his eye protection down. Getting a firm grip on whatever was on Hizashi's mouth, a harsh yank finally had the material pulling painfully away. Gulping in mouthfuls of clean air that didn't smell of chemicals, ignoring the stinging of irritated skin all around his mouth, Hizashi somehow managed to get his damaged vocal chords to wheeze out one word.

"Hise."

Dark eyes widened before Aizawa whirled around to see Hise's unmoving body. Aizawa was at Hise's side in an instant, uncaring of the blood seeping into his clothing as he knelt beside Hise and searched frantically for a pulse, a breath, any evidence that the other teen was still alive.

Police sirens were getting closer and the heroes that had been mentoring Supernova and Mic were running down the alleyway towards them, but Hizashi didn't register any of that. All he could see was the slow slumping of Aizawa's shoulders as he kept searching for a sign of life that wasn't forthcoming. Everything was too much, it had probably only been ten minutes at the most since the clay villain had jumped them but it felt like it'd been hours and it all crashed into Hizashi at once. The world around him was rapidly fading away as his body gave out, but right before he could hit the ground he felt two arms wrap around him and pull him close to a softly trembling body.

* * *

Waking up had never been so painful. The pain had been dulled by whatever healing had been done to him, but Hizashi could still feel the bruising in his throat and face as his consciousness slowly came back to him. He was in a hospital, that much he could tell from the uncomfortably stiff bed, the IV in his arm, and the machine beeping in his ear. So, he was alive. That was something to be thankful for.

Sitting himself up from the reclining position of his bed took longer and much more effort than it usually did, and once he'd managed it he was winded and in more pain than before. He couldn't remember the clay villain getting in many blows to his body, but his body's unresponsiveness and tenderness said otherwise. Reaching the hand that wasn't connected to the IV to tentatively run over his neck, hissing at the pain that flared up at the barest touch, Hizashi let his head slump forward as he forced himself to breathe. He was alive, and that was more than enough to be thankful for.

"Hizashi," It was the first time that Shouta would use Hizashi's first name, and he wished it had been under happier circumstances. Raising his head in surprise, Hizashi realized that Aizawa had been sitting beside his bed the whole time. Aizawa's eyes looked worse than they normally did, but they were alert and full of concern as they took in Hizashi's battered state.

"Hise…"

Aizawa didn't say a word, but he didn't need to. The way his eyes looked away, the way he was suddenly chewing nervously on his lower lip, the way his shoulders had hunched inwards, they all told Hizashi what Aizawa couldn't.

Hizashi wasn't even aware of his fingers gripping the sheets covering him, wasn't aware of the tears streaming from his eyes and falling freely onto said sheets and his shaking hands, nor was he aware that his entire body had begun to shake as he fought for every breath that he took. His body had seized up and he was fighting it to keep breathing, to stay conscious, to stay alive. Everything was collapsing in around him and everything hurt _so damn much_. The simple act of living had never been harder than at that moment.

If Hizashi were a lesser man he would have given in, he would have screamed and shouted senselessly at the cruelty of the world and the unfairness of life, but he couldn't. He was going to be a hero, now he was more determined than ever, and he had to be strong. He couldn't break, he couldn't be weak, and he couldn't let his quirk cause damage in the midst of all the pain crashing into him. He just… couldn't.

"Hizashi, it's okay." The arms that wrapped around his trembling shoulders were strong this time, as was the chest that his face was tucked into. "You can do whatever you need to. I'm here. I won't let you destroy anything."

Those words, spoken so softly and with more care than Hizashi had ever heard aimed at anyone else before, broke the already crumbling wall that was holding Hizashi's voice back. With his hands twisted in Aizawa's shirt and his head buried in a warm chest, Hizashi let himself break. He cried out, he screamed, he abused his already raw throat until no more sound would come out. Hizashi had no clue how long he cried for until the tears finally dried up but it took even longer for his body to stop shuddering. Drained of every ounce of strength Hizashi was suddenly beyond exhausted and his throat felt like it'd been swallowing nails for hours, but he was being held so tightly that the darkness gathering in his mind didn't seem so scary.

* * *

The end of their first year had been a somber time at school as everyone was shook up by Hise's death. Hizashi was much more quiet than he used to be, at first it was a necessity as his throat healed but even after it began feeling better he just didn't feel up to his old cheerful antics. Everyone tried to make him feel better in their own careful way, but having people walk on eggshells when they were around him got old really fast. Hizashi just wanted everything to go back to how they were even though at the same time he knew that they never would.

Hizashi started spending more time with Aizawa and Toshi at the beginning of their second year, Aizawa more so since Toshi was busy with class rep duties and other club activities that he'd gotten involved in. Hizashi didn't mind this as he enjoyed his alone time with Aizawa… Shouta, actually, since the dark haired teen had quietly mumbled that they were both far past being in a place to call each other by their first names.

Shouta was still his normal quiet, lazy self, but Hizashi had always liked that about him and now he was more than happy to join in. During breaks he'd scoot his chair over to Shouta's desk and lean on him as he read a book, or if the sleepyhead was nodding off into a nap Hizashi would pull out his music player and slip an earbud into each of their ears. During lunch they'd find a quiet spot in the courtyard on nice days or stay at their desks to eat and chat, Toshi would usually join them for lunch when he could escape from responsibilities. Toshi was also the first person to make Hizashi laugh again as he regaled the smaller blond with stories from his and Shouta's time in middle school.

There was a gaping hole where Hise should have been and there probably always would be, but rather than try to hide it and pretend it wasn't there Shouta and Toshi were there to walk Hizashi through his bad days and help him through his grief. They were exactly what Hizashi needed and the searing ache in his chest was gradually getting to the point of bearable.

More hands on hero work out in the field was also doing wonders to distract Hizashi and solidify his resolve to become a great hero, more so now that he was carrying both his and Hise's dream. He'd confessed once to Shouta how he felt about being a hero for both himself and Hise, a bit embarrassed because he thought it might sound silly to the other teen but Shouta had simply nodded without taking his eyes off of his homework and said, "do your best."

It was during a patrol of a summer festival that the most incredible thing happened. Present Mic, along with several of his classmates, were tasked with patrolling the perimeter and middle of the festival grounds just to make sure that peace was kept. Thankful that he was on a route by himself that didn't intersect with Crystalline (she had been crushed by Hise's death and Hizashi had no clue how to comfort her especially when he didn't even know how to comfort himself), Hizashi took his time walking the perimeter as he kept an eye out for anything unusual.

The lights were festively lighting up the night and letting off a soft glow as laughter and conversation mingled to float towards Hizashi. It was a time of celebration but the blond's chest was abnormally heavy and he couldn't find it in himself to join in the atmosphere despite how much he would have normally loved it. He wasn't depressed, necessarily, and he didn't feel guilty about letting himself be happy, but this was just one of those nights that he wasn't feeling it.

A shadow landing lightly in front of him made the blond jump violently and he would have blasted the guy's eardrums out if his quirk had been working. Grinning at the put out glare being shot at him, Eraserhead blinked once to break the nullification as he straightened up from his crouch.

"Still waiting for this promise of yours to blow me away." It was a running joke between them at this point and Hizashi fell back to his normal response of sticking his tongue out at his friend as he crossed his arms. Tilting his head as he took in the downward tilt to Hizashi's lips, Shouta frowned as well before he reached a hand up to smooth the pad of his thumb over Hizashi's lower lip. "Keep your chin up, sunshine. It'll get better."

With a small smile, Shouta let his hand drop before reaching into one of the pouches around his waist. Wondering if Shouta knew that his words were echoes of the ones that Hise used to say to cheer him up, Hizashi stood there frozen until something was pressed into his hands. Glancing down, green eyes widened as they fell upon the intricately crafted paper sunflower from one of the festival's stalls. It could have meant nothing more than a gesture between friends but it could have also meant something so much more, and for the first time in a long while Hizashi decided to not second guess himself and simply acted.

Shouta had turned around and was already walking away with every intention of getting back to work, but Hizashi moved faster as he lunged forward to grab at Shouta's left shoulder and spin him around. Surprise and confusion flashed in those tired brown eyes as Hizashi grabbed a fistful of gray scarf and pulled Shouta close.

Their teeth bumped together before their lips did, the angle was a bit awkward and the contact only lasted a few moments, but it was warm and sweet and made life burst back into Hizashi's veins with a blinding light that exploded behind his eyelids. Their first kiss was a bit sloppy due to Hizashi's momentum and it honestly made Hizashi feel a bit sheepish as he pulled away thinking for sure that that would be the last one, but with Shouta's arms wrapping around Hizashi's waist to steady him their second, third, and fourth kiss went a lot smoother.

* * *

A few softly sung words slipped past Hizashi's lips as he continued to hum, his eyes having never strayed once from Shouta's sleeping face even as he reminisced. Shouta had once told Hizashi that the first time they kissed had changed his life, and while it had also changed the course of Hizashi's that kiss also saved him. He'd never said it because he knew that Shouta knew even without words, but with that first kiss some of the broken pieces floating around inside Hizashi's chest had sewn back together and laid the foundation for the rest of the pieces to find their way home.

It had been a bumpy road at times, working through the change in their relationship while Hizashi was still healing, but Shouta never had been the kind to rush and they took things nice and slow. By the time they had graduated from UA and started work as pro heroes they had reached a place in their new relationship where intimate touches, easy kisses, and the word love were part of their daily lives. They somehow managed to survive the tumultuous first couple of years after school that was filled with establishing themselves as heroes and making a name for themselves, although that's not to say that they didn't hit a few speed bumps along the way.

The hand that Hizashi had been stroking through Shouta's hair wandered lower to caress the warm skin covering Shouta's beating pulse on its way to the frayed collar of an old gray shirt that Shouta had refused to throw out for years. Pulling the collar down just enough to catch the top of a clean black line that had been inked into Shouta's skin years ago, Hizashi felt a fond smile light up his lips as he remembered the fight that had revolved around that tattoo.

* * *

It was their first major fight. It was the kind of fight that rapidly desolved into nonsensical shouting simply for the sake of shouting, the whole point of the fight lost dozens of hurtful words ago. Hizashi was doing most of the shouting as he was really the only angry one, Shouta was just sitting there with his head in his hands as he'd long given up trying to get a word in. If Hizashi's voice weren't so loud Shouta would probably have considered taking a nap until his boyfriend had yelled himself out.

"It's not like I'm expecting you to be someone different, but it'd be nice if you put in a little more effort every now and then!" Blond hair was unraveling from its messy braid as it was haplessly thrown about while Hizashi paced back and forth next to the kitchen table and worked himself up more. "You don't care about things like everyone else does, I get that, I know that, but you could at least care about me! I would have thought that you could do at least that much!"

"Hizashi," It had been a long ass day and Shouta was tired and his throat was scratchy and his eyes had been hurting all day and all he wanted was for Hizashi to _just stop shouting_.

"We're different from normal people, we do things differently, I understand that, but I thought that we could at least do some things like a normal couple. I mean, we've been together for five years, maybe that's it. Are you bored of me? Complacent? Have we gotten to the point that you just don't care anymore? Because if this is fizzling out you should really just tell me!" It was as if the blond hadn't heard him.

"Hizashi," Dropping one hand to the table as he tried again, Shouta was very disappointed but not horribly surprised to discover that he was still being ignored.

"Is it because we're so different? You and I _are_ very different people, after all. Did we force this? Try to make something out of nothing and it just wasn't meant to be? Was everything meant to fall apart from the beginning?"

"Hizashi!"

"What?!" It was the kind of shout that came from the chest instead of the throat, the kind that shook your bones and rattled in your ears at its power. Whirling around, ready to really have at it now that he finally got a raise out of the other man, Hizashi stopped dead in his tracks when he met eyes that were burning red. If Shouta's hair hadn't been tied back Hizashi knew it'd be lifting off of his shoulders.

The feeling was equivalent to a cinder block being launched into his gut. It was a sharp pain that made his entire body want to collapse in on itself as thousands of tiny tendrils of physical agony shot out into every part of his body. With his hands held tightly over his mouth and horrified shock in his eyes, Hizashi just stood there and stared as the red faded from those unblinking eyes before a hand rubbed roughly at them with a pained groan.

"Hizashi-"

"I-I'm sorry. I would never-I didn't mean to-" Hizashi was stuttering from behind his hands, feeling so awfully, gut-wrenchingly guilty that he was seconds away from breaking.

"You didn't." Shouta sighed tiredly, still rubbing at his eyes as he stood from the table to walk up to his still unmoving boyfriend. "I was just being careful. You were starting to get a little crazy." Reaching up to pull Hizashi's hands away from his mouth, Shouta was really just relieved that the shouting had finally stopped.

"I would never hurt you. N-not intentionally." Hizashi hung his head as every ounce of fight left his body and he let himself be hugged close to Shouta's chest.

"I know." A kiss was placed on the top of Hizashi's head. "And now that I can get a word in, I did _not_ forget what today is, you idiot."

"Ouch!" Hizashi yelped in legitimate pain as he got smacked in the head, hard.

"Like I would forget." There was a hint of hurt in the glare Shouta was leveling him with, which only made Hizashi feel worse. "We don't do things like normal people, I agree. Which is why I did this instead of getting you a normal present."

Hizashi watched as Shouta pulled his shirt over his head to leave his upper body bare. Eyes roved over every familiar muscle and scar until they were drawn to something that hadn't been there the night before. The skin covering Shouta's left pectoral was pink from lingering irritation and, right over that steady heartbeat that Hizashi fell asleep to every night, was fresh black ink. It was a small, simple tattoo of a soundwave, and Hizashi didn't need to ask to know which three words put together made a soundwave that looked like that.

"I…" Hizashi did not deserve this man, at all.

"Stop that." As if he had suddenly become a mind reader, Shouta knocked a knuckle against Hizashi's forehead to chase away the self-deprecating thoughts. "Now that you're done being a princess," Taking Hizashi's face between his hands to hold him steady, Shouta finally got in the first proper kiss of the evening. "Happy five years, Hizashi. I love you, you crazy ass."

Ten years later found Hizashi sitting in a hospital room that smelled strongly of disinfectant and was filled with deafening silence save for the steady beeping of a heart monitor. There were more machines and tubes than there was man as Shouta looked tiny on the white hospital bed surrounded by everything that was keeping his condition stable.

The act of taking on dozens of villains by himself, even small no-name ones, was an astounding feat for someone whose quirk did not equip them for prolonged fights. Shouta had done it, though. He held off the attacks of more people than Hizashi had been able to count at the time, protecting his students and nearly killing himself in the process as backup was on its way.

Laughing ruefully to himself as he sat beside the bed in what had to be the most uncomfortable chair in the universe, Hizashi was just trying to wrap his head around the enigma lying motionless before him. Quiet, blunt, permanently sleepy and unmotivated, Aizawa Shouta had been a question mark back in school despite the unique usefulness of his quirk. His personality had made their teachers question if he had the drive to become a pro hero, the inherent something that would make him leap into the face of danger to save a life.

Hizashi had known from the start that Shouta had everything that a hero needed, the skill, the spirit, and the pure desire to protect people. It was something that he loved about Shouta, but that willingness to throw himself between danger and innocents was also what broke Hizashi a little bit each time he had to sit in a hospital room helpless to do anything but wait.

Hizashi wasn't the religious type, but he did a lot of praying while he sat in countless white walled rooms that had blurred together over the years.

When darker than usual brown eyes opened, even if it was just a tiny painful sliver, it took several long moments for a drug addled mind to register where he was and what had happened. Through the bandages covering his face, and most of his body if the tightness surrounding his limbs was any indication, Shouta blinked slowly up at the darkened ceiling before he began the long, torturous process of turning his head.

Reddened green eyes that looked exhausted from fatigue and probable tears were staring down at the crisp white sheet that was doing a poor job of keeping the chill away from Shouta's body. Catching the slight movement of Shouta's poor attempt at basic motor functions, Hizashi instantly came back to life as he half stood from his chair to lean over the bed.

"You're awake! How do you...feel?" The question was stupid as soon as it left Hizashi's lips and he had to laugh at himself but he was so relieved that it didn't even matter. "I'm sorry." He apologized to the very much not amused glare in the parts of Shouta's eyes that he could see.

Reaching forward to carefully kiss the bandages covering Shouta's cheek, Hizashi moved up to rest their foreheads together as his sore eyes were finally allowed to close. Blond hair that had lost its anti-gravity styling from fingers running repeatedly through it fell around them in curtains, shielding them from the harsh fluorescent lights of the room.

Hizashi didn't want to cry again, he really didn't. He didn't want to dampen the bandages protecting Shouta's wounds from infection and he knew how much the other man hated it when he cried. With next to no mobility and no voice to comfort with, Shouta had to have felt awful about not being able to stop the tears leaking out of already puffy eyes.

"Thank you for waking up." Hizashi's voice sounded odd to his own ears since he'd sat in silence for so long without using it, but he was sure that his partner appreciated the lower than normal volume with how much he must have been hurting. Wiping impatiently at his eyes and damp bangs that had gotten in the way, Hizashi straightened back up with a small but happy smile. "I can also show you this, now."

Pulling the collar of his v-neck off to the side, the blond revealed the splash of color woven into the pale pigment of the skin over his heart right where Shouta's was. It was a watercolor-esque tattoo of an anatomically correct heart and wrapped loosely around it was Shouta's scarf. Hizashi had spent years planning this tattoo, deliberating long and hard over the perfect symbol to permanently ink onto him.

The corners of hazy brown eyes lifted minutely and the ghost of a smile appeared beneath white bandages, telling Hizashi that he'd chosen the right one.

* * *

Hizashi had woken up from nightmares for a week after that incident, jolting up in bed with a panicked shout as his body shivered from the cold sweat covering it. It was scarily reminiscent of the weeks that followed Hise's death when Hizashi's unconscious mind would play through that night over and over, only this time instead of Hise dying in a pool of his own blood it was Shouta. This time, however, there were a pair of arms that would wrap around Hizashi and coax him back down as a husky voice murmured in his ear until he calmed down again.

There were many nights throughout the years that Hizashi would lose sleep to his own mind and the following days were survived by sheer will and caffeine alone, but Shouta was always there with him. On good nights Hizashi would be able to be lulled back to sleep, on bad nights they would sit in bed wrapped up in blankets and each other as they talked in hushed tones or simply held each other. No matter how dark and bleak the nights became Shouta always made sure that Hizashi made it through to see the sun rise.

Shouta still had the scar under his right eye from that incident to add to the myriad of other scars that he carried from battles with countless villains and Hizashi made it a point to kiss it as often as he was allowed to remind himself how lucky he was to still have his partner alive despite so many things wanting to kill him.

A big yawn, an exaggerated stretch, and a readjustment of position jostled the space between Hizashi and Shouta. Glancing down at the fluffy gray cat curling back up into Shouta's chest, Hizashi laughed quietly at their little princess as he stroked a hand over her head and scratched her ears. She'd been wreaking havoc earlier when they'd been trying to grade papers at the coffee table, but now she was a little angel in her sleep and their papers were finally in two neat stacks.

Toshi was a special cat to them for multiple reasons and she'd stolen their hearts from the first time they saw her at the shelter.

* * *

"I'm pretty sure this is against school policy."

"It's not against school policy if no one sees her."

"How is she even staying in there?"

"It's comfortable. I'd stay in there."

"You...kind of do stay in there…"

Toshinori was used to the weird conversations between his two high school friends that he overheard more often than he would honestly like. Not even bothering to wonder what the two of them were going on about this time, he instead devoted his attention to the words that weren't quite focusing on the papers in front of him. His eyesight had been declining alarmingly fast recently and although he didn't share this fact with anyone it worried him to the point of keeping him up at night.

Shaking his head free of negative thoughts, the wizened hero reached for the bag of seaweed chips that had appeared on his desk sometime that morning while he'd been out teaching a class. Although he had no proof, he was fairly certain he knew the culprits that kept leaving small snacks on his desk for him to nibble on when the remnants of his stomach would allow him to. Taking a small bite of a chip and chewing slowly just as the door to the teachers' office opened, Toshinori glanced up as Shouta entered first with Hizashi close behind and giving his back weird looks.

"Toshi, we want you to meet someone." Blunt and to the point as always, Shouta stopped right in front of Toshinori's chair with his arms crossed and his face impassive.

"Um…" Toshinori peered around Shouta but saw no one other than Hizashi shifting his weight from foot to foot. Looking back up, brows furrowed in confusion as Toshinori could swear he saw Shouta's scarf move as if something was shifting around beneath it. "Shouta, is your scarf meowing?"

"Told you she didn't like it in there." Hizashi muttered.

"She's purring." Shouta countered as he reached up to carefully extricate what looked to be a small ball of gray fluff from his scarf. "Toshi, meet Toshi." Toshinori was suddenly faced with baby blue eyes looking back at him from within the gray fluff, a tiny pink nose, and whiskers that were longer than the tiny kitten's entire body.

"We just adopted her yesterday. The shelter said she was the runt of a feral litter that someone found and her mother didn't want her, so that's why she's so small. I think she'll be beautiful when she grows up, though, don't you- Toshi? You okay?" Hizashi was affectionately petting the kitten when he noticed the expression on his old friend's face.

"You...you guys got a kitten...and you named her after me."

Shouta and Hizashi exchanged startled, deer in the headlights looks as Toshinori began tearing up. Neither of them had ever seen Toshinori cry before, and it certainly didn't help that they were both horribly inept when it came to dealing with crying people that weren't each other. Seeing that he was going to receive no help from his partner, Shouta made the executive decision to resolve the situation by placing tiny Toshi in Toshinori's lap before awkwardly shuffling away to his own desk.

With a meow that was surprisingly loud for such a tiny body, kitten Toshi stood up with her hind legs braced on Toshinori's legs to reach up as far as her body would let her to paw at Toshinori's shirt, her blue eyes blinking sweetly up at the man she was currently on. Bony hands that were shaking from how much Toshinori was afraid of hurting the baby creature carefully scooped Toshi up to bring her to eye level. Blue met blue as they silently gazed at each other. Another meow and a paw softly batting at Toshinori's nose was all it took for the dam holding back the waterworks to break.

* * *

Toshi spent a lot of time with her namesake as she grew bigger and stronger, staying with Toshinori whenever her dads were busy with hero work or out of town. There were dozens and dozens of pictures of the two Toshi's together playing, napping, baking, and a whole host of other activities as kitten Toshi grew up. They were pictures that were cherished by both Shouta and Hizashi, as they were fond memories of their dear friend who, earlier that year, had finally succumbed to his body's rapid deterioration.

The funeral had been both a terribly sad and uplifting event. Even though they were saying goodbye to someone that they had known as long as they knew each other, the number of people that were saying goodbye as well was overwhelming. Heroes from every corner of the globe and everyday citizen alike paid respects to the greatest hero of their time on the day that he died. It was unbelievable, the number of people that Toshinori had affected during his life as All Might. It made Hizashi remember a teenaged Toshinori in class 1-A who had shyly but confidently stated that he wanted to be the kind of hero that people could look up to and rely on no matter what. He had wanted to be the kind of hero that people would remember for years after he was gone, and as Hizashi stood in the midst of thousands of people who would always remember the name All Might he could only hope that his friend knew that his dream had come true.

Losing Toshinori had hurt in a way that Hizashi hadn't felt since he'd lost Hise even though he'd been expecting it this time and could somewhat prepare himself. The memories that he had of his friend and the invaluable friendship that Toshinori had given him was something that Hizashi would always cherish. Hizashi had learned the hard way years ago how to take the loss of a friend and use it to make himself stronger.

A quiet snuffle from Hizashi's lap stilled his hand on Shouta's head as the still sleeping man readjusted in his sleep, pulling Toshi closer to him as he snuggled them both deeper into Hizashi's lap. They were both lazy kittens, but they were his lazy kittens.

Sitting on an end table next to the lamp was a framed picture of Hizashi, Shouta, and Yagi on the day that Shouta and Hizashi officially pledged themselves to each other for the rest of their lives. It had been the last trip the three of them took together before Yagi's passing. They'd gone to America, Shouta enduring the long flight in between the two blonds, and had spent two weeks in California sightseeing and eating and having a blast.

Yagi was the only witness that they needed when they said their vows, and he definitely shed enough tears for all three of them and more.

Feeling the pull of sleep become stronger, Hizashi let his eyes close as his hand bearing the familiar weight of his wedding band resumed its gentle stroking.

* * *

"I'm home." Hizashi barely got the words out before he slumped to the floor right where he was, the weight of his lax body closing the front door behind him. His head felt too heavy to hold itself up, so he let it clunk painfully back against the door as he let out the most pitiful groan he could manage in an attempt to make himself feel better. He was so battered and sore that it was a bit of a miracle that he'd managed to drag his body home before it gave out. He was covered in dust and sweat and a whole host of other distasteful material that made his hair droop and his clothes feel itchy. If it were up to him he'd happily pass out right there in the entrance way and let the day just be over right then and there.

"Welcome home." The smooth, tired voice that Hizashi would know anywhere, even half dead, was suddenly right in front of him as hands smelling of a mixture of spices began removing his gear. Glasses were unstuck from his face, adhered with something sticky that Hizashi couldn't remember getting spilled on him, headphones were extracted from tangled hair, and his amplifier was carefully removed from around his neck.

"Shou?" Hizashi's eyes were too tired to force open so instead he blindly reached his arms up like a child with the trust that Shouta would help him off of the floor.

"Yes, yes, I'm here." The patient voice was further away as a few soft clunks indicated that Shouta had moved Hizashi's gear to the entryway table before he was back. Strong shoulders entered the loose circle of Hizashi's arms as he was pulled into a firm hold before being lifted back onto his feet.

"You should have seen it, Shou. It was awesome." Hizashi was loopy tired and started rambling on with a dopey smile as he was somehow lifted into his boyfriend's arms without even realizing it. "I'm kind of surprised you didn't get called in. This guy's quirk turned him into a giant godzilla, it was super cool. He was stomping around and chomping on buildings. I think Kirishima-kun was jealous. He was there, you know. He got called in. Kept getting distracted, though. I think he was definitely jealous. He seems like the type to want to chomp on buildings."

Hizashi kept his stream of random thoughts going as he chatted Shouta's ear off all the way to the bathroom. He wouldn't shut up until the shower had gotten turned on, warmed up, and he was propped up against the wall to get his clothes peeled from his body. A chaste kiss was placed on his cheek before hands were guiding him into the shower and under the blissfully hot spray. The gentle pounding against his skin instantly relaxed his muscles and made him want to melt into the tiles under his feet.

"Wash yourself up while I finish dinner. If you're not out in ten minutes, I'm going to assume you drowned." With one last concerned glance at his half standing boyfriend, Shouta closed the bathroom door as he left with the bundle of Hizashi's dirty clothing under his arm.

Hizashi did manage to clean himself without drowning, actually. With the warmth bringing some life back to his body he took his time getting his skin feeling good again and his hair back to its normal shine. Stepping out of the shower feeling refreshed, the blond toweled off with his giant fluffy blue towel that he'd unashamedly splurged on and got dressed in the clothes that had magically appeared on the vanity counter while he'd been in the shower.

Comfy in his fuzzy pink pyjama pants, his normal glasses, and Shouta's old UA shirt that he'd stolen years ago, Hizashi reappeared in the dining room feeling cozy and happy. Scratching Toshi under her chin before lifting her off of the table, Hizashi made a move to sit down before his eyes took in the table and he paused.

"Hey, Shouta?" Hizashi called into the kitchen without taking his eyes off of the table, as if looking away would prove the image a mirage that would disappear.

"Hm?" Shouta walked in at that moment carrying two bowls of rice to complete the spread of food already on the table.

"Uh," His throat was trying to form words as his eyes darted from plate to plate. There was fish in a dark sweet sauce, barbecued pork, marinated beef slices, a variety of vegetables, and were those pig ears? It was every one of Hizashi's favorite dishes in one place that had to have taken hours to prepare. "You...you had work today…"

"As did you." Shouta replied easily as he sat down across from a still gaping Hizashi and placed one of the bowls of rice in front of him.

"When did you- why- it's nearly midnight! How did you-?" Hizashi's unintelligent fragments were cut off by a pair of chopsticks sticking a piece of pork in his mouth.

"I always cook for you on your birthday."

Hizashi's chewing stopped abruptly as his eyes slid to the calendar hanging in the kitchen. July 7th, today was his birthday. Well, how about that. He was a year older.

"I'm sorry you had to work all day." Shouta was placing a bit of everything into Hizashi's bowl, ignoring the fact that his boyfriend was still staring dumbly at the calendar. Hizashi was too preoccupied with trying to figure out how he went the entire day before having to be told that it was his birthday. It was baffling, even for him. "Stop spacing and eat before it gets cold." Chopsticks bonking him on the nose finally broke the spell and brought Hizashi back.

"Thank you." Hizashi murmured shyly, pulling his knees up to his chest as he started eating his dinner in earnest.

They started up a light conversation, just chatting about their days and swapping stories like they always did over a shared meal. Well, Hizashi chatted and Shouta just nodded along with a random comment here and there as he made sure Hizashi ate enough. They also pretended to not notice the other slipping Toshi a bite or two as she sat at their feet.

By the time the plates and bowls were empty Hizashi's stomach was nicely full and he was more than ready to pass out for the night as he wobbled to his feet. Half-hearted attempts to help clear the table were firmly rejected as he was steered towards the couch to sit and wait while Shouta cleaned up.

With a warm ball of purring fur in his lap it was super easy for Hizashi's tired body to nod off for a bit, so much so that he wasn't sure how much time had passed before he was being awoken by soft kisses being peppered across his face from cheek to cheek. Giggling sleepily and reaching out for the man that he knew without even opening his eyes would always be there, Hizashi pulled Shouta into a warm hug, snuggling in close and holding on long enough to nearly drop back off to sleep.

"At least get in bed before you fall asleep." His voice was huffy but Shouta had Hizashi securely cradled against him as his fingers ruffled through silky hair. "Do you want your present now or tomorrow?"

"Present?" Thankfully, Shouta had the foresight to pull his head back just in time to avoid getting his chin knocked by Hizashi perking up.

"Yes, dummy." A knuckle tapped against Hizashi's forehead, making him wince in mock hurt. "It's your birthday, of course I got you something." Shouta's head tilted as he smiled in fond exasperation.

"Now." Hizashi started bouncing, disturbing Toshi from his lap with a disgruntled meow. "Can I have it now?" He was a thirty-three year old man wiggling about like a kid on Christmas morning and it was probably the most endearing thing Shouta had seen in a long while.

"Sure, love." From his position kneeling on the carpet at Hizashi's feet, Shouta seemed a little nervous as he reached into his pocket. "It's…" Seemingly struggling to put the right words together, which was odd coming from the man who never hesitated to choose the few words that did come out of his mouth, Shouta instead shook his head a little as he placed a small object into Hizashi's hand. "If you don't… you can wear it on your right hand if you want, or a chain if you prefer. You can also just put it in a drawer if it's not to your taste." He shrugged self-consciously, his eyes wandering off of Hizashi's frozen face as he stared down at his hand. "I just...want to keep cooking you dinner on your birthday for as many birthdays as you have left, if you'll let me."

Hizashi wasn't sure if he was breathing anymore. He was holding a ring in his palm, a white gold band that wove around itself to resemble Shouta's scarf that looked like it would fit on his ring finger like it was made for it. Knowing Shouta, it most likely had been made just for his finger.

He was probably crying, he couldn't really tell, but he was definitely laughing in unbridled happiness as he threw himself at the clinically insane man who thought he'd actually say no. As they toppled to the floor in a tangled pile, Shouta wincing from his back making hard contact and the bruising hold Hizashi had on him, sloppy wet kisses were being pressed to every part of Shouta's body that Hizashi could reach. Fending off the onslaught of affection with both hands pressed against an unexpectedly strong chest, Shouta could only manage a breath or two of freedom before lips sealing over his stole it all.

"Yes, you idiot, of course you can!" Hizashi was definitely crying. "You can cook for every birthday, anniversary, random Sunday, whenever you want. You can pick my ass off of the entryway floor to drag me to the shower after every single late night fight and sit by my hospital bed cursing me out every time I do something stupid. You can...god, Shouta, you can do whatever you want with me for the rest of our lives, but you have to put that ring on my left hand first!"

Needless to say, Shouta did precisely that.

* * *

Slow shifting in his lap as Shouta began to rouse from sleep brought Hizashi's mind back from memory lane as he opened his eyes to find himself absently playing with the black tungsten ring on his husband's finger. Bringing his humming to a peaceful end, Hizashi leaned over to kiss the corner of Shouta's lips as dark, sleepy eyes blinked open.

"Time for bed, sleepyhead." The light glare that Hizashi's old nickname received made him snicker.

"Shut it, cockatoo."

As they lethargically got to their feet, Toshi still sound asleep in Shouta's arms, and turned off the television and lamp before heading to the bedroom, Hizashi realized a few things about life. There would always be good people, bad people, and everything in between. There would always be happiness and sadness, smiles and tears. There would always be new life blooming at the same time as lives were ending. There would always be hardships and failures, and there would always be triumphs and miracles.

For the two men who devoted their lives as Present Mic and Eraserhead during the day to protect the innocent with everything that they had, these truths about life were ever at the forefront of their minds. As their hands found each other and they were nothing more than Shouta and Hizashi, two normal people who lived in a small apartment with their cat and loved each other to the ends of the world and back, there was one more truth in their life that was as set in stone as all the others.

They would always have each other.


End file.
